Sheppard Software offers hundreds of online learning games for learners in a large variety of subjects. Topics include brain games, seasons, nutrition, and world geography. Search for specific topics or browse categories. Looking for a specific grade level range? Scroll down below the main icons to view recommended sections for different age ranges from preschool to adult. In addition to games, some categories include videos, timelines, and coloring activities.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Bookmark this site to use as a resource for computer center games and activities throughout the year. Share curriculum-related resources on your interactive whiteboard or projector. This site could work well in a BYOD or 1:1 classroom. Share with parents as a resource to use at home or as a summer skills review and refresher.

Bring science to life with this free community of Science Workshop ideas. The site may not look exciting, but the activities bring real hands-on learning to science. Browse a few activities to get the idea. After registering, click on the CSW Projects and Activities tab. Search the activities by project type (e.g. projectiles, music, woodshop) or by STEM content. Workshop ideas are either video or downloaded instructions with images. Most use simple, inexpensive materials.

In the Classroom

Use these activities to create contraptions for students to manipulate in class. As students use a manipulative, collect their questions about what they observe or wonder about the contraption's motion and characteristics. Students can research the science behind the object or motion. Use class discussion to create understanding about basic scientific principles. Be sure to include a link to this site on your classroom computer or website. Students can use these activities to teach concepts to other students in their class. Many of these activities make great demonstrations as an introduction to a science concept and for uncovering student misconceptions. Expand what you ask students to do by using creative writing, reading, creating Infographics, or learning correct ways to research and report findings about the subject matter.

Quickly remove backgrounds from images using Clipping Magic. Choose an image from your computer. (A photo with sharp lines and clear features works best.) View the instructions to begin. Outline the portion you want to keep in green, them remove the background with red. Adjust the brush size and background color using tools provided. Save and download when finished. Tutorials will help you master the skills, and examples make the tool easy to understand. Why remove backgrounds? You can "place" an object in another background setting or create drag and drop activities without confusing backgrounds around the image. You can also combine or montage images more easily. This tool is currently in Beta. Sign up during the beta period to continue to receive free services from this site.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Use Clipping Magic to create masks for classroom plays or activities. Share with students for use with projects to create and combine images without busy backgrounds. For example, create pictures of presidents, castles, or plants for use with any report or on slides for a presentation. Take pictures of students; then remove the background. Save images for use throughout the year in hall displays, bulletin boards, on reward certificates, etc.

Next Vista offers Learning videos for teachers looking for alternatives to YouTube. At the time of this review, they offered over 1,000 videos (most useful for in the classroom). Videos are made by teachers and/or students. Search by three main topics: Light Bulbs, Global View, or Seeing Service. Better yet, use the right sidebar to search by topic: Math, Science, World Languages, History & Culture, Performing Arts, and more.Next Vista offers an extensive collection of career videos to use as a resource for exploring and discovering career opportunities. View videos directly on site or share using the link or embed code provided. Throughout the school year, Next Vista hosts video creation contests for students and teachers. Submit your own videos less than 5 minutes in length using directions provided. They even offer small prizes for winners.

In the Classroom

Explore the various topics to share with your students. In the math section, share the "How to Show Your Work" video on your projector or interactive whiteboard. There are useful videos in all sections, offered at a variety of levels. Bookmark and save this site for use throughout the year for student and teacher created videos. Challenge students to create a video to submit for one of the site's contests; who knows, they may win!

Love to use Pinterest but wish you could pin text, links, and other non-image items? Enter Pinstamatic. This site can jazz up more than images. Add quotes, links, and more with this simple tool. It is also helpful for the graphically challenged. Be sure you are logged into Pinterest, and then go to Pinstamatic. Choose from Sticky, Spotify, Quote, Twitter, Calendar, or Location. Enter text, URL, or other information and click preview. When you like the way it looks, click Pin.

In the Classroom

Expand classroom use of Pinterest to include Twitter items, quotes, and more. Make pinboards for different subjects or units where you collect videos, images, classroom blogs and websites, etc. In lower grades, pinboard make links more accessible for non-readers. Share your pinboards with students and parents by putting the link on your class website. Create pinboards highlighting topics being studied in class for use as study guides. Challenge your older students to curate their own pinboards as a research project. Use Pinterest to show their hobbies/passions, wise quotes, healthy recipes, art/lyrics, or travel Itinerary. Need your students to register for email to use Pinterest? Read tips for safely managing email registrations here.

This is an extraordinary piece of digital art that consists of zooming dreamscapes. Get lost in this never ending series of landscapes. As the interactive zooms in, aspects of it come into sharper focus. Use the slider to make it move faster or slower (even in reverse!) Use the dial on the upper left side to control your options.

In the Classroom

Share this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Use this to inspire other digital art work or as a creative writing prompt. In English class, talk about the motifs that are common in fantasy/science fiction and how to describe them using words instead of visuals. In art class, look for styles of drawing, line, color, and other design elements that "mean" fantasy to viewers. Allow students the opportunity to focus on an aspect or aspects of the visuals to inspire their writing. Turn off the sound and imagine the narrative, sounds, or music to accompany the images. Inspire poetry visually. Challenge artists to make a zoomable image of their own and "zoom" into it as they record a screencast accompanied by their own narration or music. Try Screencast-o-matic, reviewed here, to record the zooming narrative.

Take note! VideoNot.es is a collaborative notebook that will enhance your online learning experiences. Play a video file on the left side of the screen while typing notes in blank note-taking space on the right. You can't go wrong with this tool. Copy and paste a video URL from Khan Academy, Coursera, Udacity, Vimeo, or even YouTube. Play the video and start typing your notes! Each new line that you start writing on is time-coded to coincide with the video. After typing your notes, this noteworthy feature allows you to click on that line and the video will automatically jump to the spot that note was added. Imagine the time this will save you when reviewing your notes. Pause the video until the concept is understood and resume the video with keyboard shortcuts. VideoNot.es integrates with Google Drive. Save your notes in Google Drive to collaborate with friends and classmates. Collaboration with video information will revolutionize your online education and your experience in a flipped classroom. Note that this tool will not work if the video sharing service (such as YouTube) is blocked in your school.

In the Classroom

Flipping your classroom? You'll flip over this collaborative video note taking tool. Students watch videos and share notes with classmates so classroom time is more efficient. Use the qualitative information from the notes as well as quantitative data from pre-assessments to differentiate instruction. VideoNote.es is great for interactive formative and summative assessments. This is a great assistive technology tool for low-level readers to listen to questions as they type their responses. Use VideoNot.es to post online presentations and to type evaluations. This is a great tool to comment on multimedia projects created by students. Post video clips for students to analyze in all subject areas. Collaboration is easy with the Google Drive integration. Do your students lose their paper-and-pencil notes? Google Drive allows for optimal organization. Students and classes can combine their notes to create study guides for the lesson. Read more about Google Docs/Drive here.

Create your own character icon (or avatar) for free with Portrait Illustration Maker. Customize your character with all of the options on the site. Select your hairstyle, face line, eyes, eyebrows, nose, mouth, coloration, as well as other effects and accessories. Click Download to save your completed character as a PNG (or other file format) to use on a website or blog. Click Alignment to select gif or jpg file format or to add a Word that will appear the top of the image. Images are 96 by 96 pixels (quite small). Use the delete button to start over or to make a new character. Portrait Illustration Maker offers a FREE iOS and Android app for mobile devices.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Have students create an avatar that looks like them to use as a profile picture for a blog or website. Challenge students to create images of how they picture characters in books. Share the images with reading groups and classmates to compare. Have students create an image for a character including text boxes of character traits or the character's thoughts using a tool such as Thinglink, reviewed here. Create an avatar to speak using a tool such as Blabberize, reviewed here or Fotobabble, reviewed here. The avatar could be a historical figure, book character, narrator, or represent the student. Use this tool together with emotional support or autistic support students to create faces that express certain feelings. Use the word labels to identify the feelings.

In the Classroom

Begin your curriculum planning here. After reviewing exemplary units, use as they are, or modify to fit the needs of your students, content, or even resources adding your own personal touch. They will inspire you to dig deeper and go further with Common Core! Be sure to bookmark this site (or save in your favorites) as your go to resource for Common Core.

Thinking with Type offers a classroom companion to the book Thinking with Type: A Critical Guide for Designers, Writers, Editors, and Students. The book (and site) contain more information about type than you ever knew existed!. Resources include lectures, project ideas, handouts, and more to use for teaching not just with the book but also as a resource for anyone that uses type. Choose the letter category to view information such as size, scale, type families, and font formats. Explore line spacing, alignment, and tracking within the text portion of the site. Discover different grids such as single and multi-column grids. Be sure to check out the section for teachers loaded with information, exercises, projects, and demos.

In the Classroom

This site is an excellent resource for web design and graphic design classes. Share portions of this site on your interactive whiteboard (or projector) for lessons in type basics, typeface history, and more. Use some of the project ideas (see Extras: Tools for Teachers) to have students create poetry posters for poetry month using artistic type and their own words. Have students explore the site and create a simple infographic sharing their findings using Easel.ly, reviewed here or Venngage reviewed here.

Watch full length documentaries online for free. Find your favorites through daily suggestions, browsing the top 100, or searching categories: 9/11, activism, art, aviation, business, comedy, crime, disaster, drugs, economics, environmental, food/drink, health, media, medicine, music, nature, performing arts, philosophy, political, religion, science, social, sport, strange, technology, travel, and many more. Look at film festivals and films featured in each. If you do not find what you are looking for, submit your request. A link to Amazon brings you to DVD's. Some are free, and others are for sale.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Discover the power of documentaries while studying point of view, primary and secondary resources, and debate skills. Examine the aspects shown in documentaries and help students find structure to provide an unbiased research project. Challenge existing knowledge in many areas. Help students become active thinkers and become involved in current events. Sharpen your own understandings.

Create fun, custom pictures easily with Glass Giant! Choose from customization options such as Giant Cookies, Tickets, holidays, or a plane banner to begin. Upload your own picture to view on a Jumbotron or in a snow globe. Easily personalize any of the images with text and color options. Save finished images using links or right click to save. Use these images as avatars, profile images or introductions. Be aware: this site has many advertisements.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Use Glass Giant to create personalized images for each of your students for back to school meetings, open house, or student of the week bulletin boards. This is a great tool for all grades. Have students use the romance novel option to create a book cover for books. Use the wanted poster option as a creative story starter. Be sure to bookmark this site to create fun images throughout the school year.

Take a look at 10 structures inspired by mathematical principles at this intriguing site. Each image includes a short description of the structure along with information on the mathematics involved in the design. This site is a quick read that is sure to inspire many opportunities for math discussions and further exploration!This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Explore this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Challenge students to find other examples of mathematical concepts used in architecture. Art teachers and math teachers can cooperate -- or simply connect to their mathematical or artistic students using this site. Have cooperative learning groups create online books demonstrating their findings using a tool such as Bookemon, reviewed here. Have students use a mapping tool such as Click2Map, reviewed here, to create a map of interesting architecture (with display markers featuring text, photos, and videos)! Challenge students to discover other examples of math in the real world and share using an annotated image including text boxes and related links using a tool such as Thinglink, reviewed here.

Easily create and share custom picture collages using Qixshr (pronounced Quick Share). Upload up to 40 images from your computer and click create Collage to create and add to your collage. Use options to move images, add or take away borders, and choose the size for your collage. Registration is required to upload images and create collages. Share finished images using links to social networks. Right click to save to your computer or copy the embed code to embed into any website. Avoid the "featured" examples, as they may not be classroom-appropriate.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Create and share collages of classroom activities, field trips, and much more. In lower grades, create the collage together or for your students. Embed collages into your class website or blog for viewing at home. Have students create collages using their own pictures of land formations, types of plants, colors, words beginning with the same letter of the alphabet, and whatever else you can think of! This is a great tool for your visual learners!

Turn meaningful words into beautiful images in just seconds using Quozio. Paste or type your quote into the quote box or use the site's bookmarklet to highlight text from the web to use as your quote. Enter who said it. Scroll through background images available to use with your quote. When finished, share via Pinterest, Facebook, or email. You can also RIGHT click the image to SAVE image as and download a copy to your computer for printing or use elsewhere. Register on Quozio using your email to save quotes directly on the Quozio site.

In the Classroom

Use Quozio to create a beautiful image to begin a unit. Start with an interesting quote or comment. View the finished picture on your interactive whiteboard (or projector) as a starting point for the unit. Make a bulletin board of quote images as writing prompts or verbal snapshots of an era, an author, or a famous person. Have older students be responsible for creating a Quozio image each week with a quote of the week or interesting comment on events that occur in class. Have students choose one interesting quote or piece of information from any text to create a Quozio then have students explain their choice as part of a class presentation.

Twiddla is an online meeting space and collaboration tool that is like having a whiteboard skin placed over any website or image so you can draw and more. Discover options available in the practice area named the Sandbox. Choose options for collaboration such as a url, uploaded image or document, or collaborate together on a blank screen. Use the Invite button to share the collaboration url via email or copy/paste. Take a snapshot of your session at any time and export as an image. Pro Accounts offer additional features, such as screen captures and password protection. Receive these services free as an educator, find the directions in the FAQ.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Use Twiddla to explore and save information from any website. Display any website on your interactive whiteboard using Twiddla. Add text, highlight information, and mark up the site as you wish. Take a screenshot and add to your classroom webpage for students to view at home for review. Have a flipped classroom? Create a lesson from any image, document, or website using Twiddla then share the image for student use. Art teachers can have students annotate a web-based image to emphasize design elements. Teach notetaking by having students mark up important ideas on a web page (perhaps evidence found in informational texts?) Hold an online conference with students about their web-based projects using Twiddla. Use Twiddla with your bring your own device (byod) classroom or in the computer lab to highlight and share information from documents, images, and websites.

Explore how math and architecture are closely linked as you view these 9 famous buildings. Discover the mathematics behind the buildings' famous facades. Each building has a short description along with a link to the definitions of the mathematical component involved. Although simple in its look, this is an excellent starting point for exploring math connections to architecture and buildings in the real world.

In the Classroom

View and explore this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Assign groups of students the task of exploring other buildings. In Art class, have students explore the relationships between math and aesthetics. Have students find other examples of the use of mathematical concepts (some ideas have been added in the comments on the site). Send them out into the community to take digital pictures on their cell phones of mathematical concepts in buildings. Challenge the groups to create a project using Padlet, reviewed here. The Padlet application creates free online bulletin boards. Have cooperative learning groups create online books of mathematics in architecture using a tool such as Bookemon, reviewed here.

Choose from almost 300 courses to take for free at Saylor. Topics range from general education to computer science and professional development. There is a K-12 area that includes Common Core information (for teachers or parents), test prep, and English lessons. Explore a specific area of study to find courses or choose the course list to view all offerings. Some courses include a full textbook and/or a full set of video lectures and are listed on the content matrix. Each course lists learning outcomes, course requirements, and a course overview. Create your own eportfolio to enroll in courses, track progress, download transcripts, and engage with the online community. Pass the final exam of each course to receive a certificate of completion.

In the Classroom

Allow gifted students to enroll in courses that interest them or that provide enrichment beyond classroom content. Share with others in your building as a resource for professional development. Explore the topics yourself for some new, engaging topics to round out your own expertise. Allow students to enroll in a course that would fit into their career goals as an exploratory opportunity in that field.

MashPlant studio is a digital classroom and project workspace that combines social media in a safe setting. Once signed up and approved, your first step is to create a new studio that will appear on your corkboard. This studio will be the home for your class announcements and serve as a virtual bulletin board. Studio members can share by uploading text, videos, or images. Please note: the owner of the studio approves all additions to the corkboard before they go live. Use the blog center as a quick and easy way to post announcements or assignments. Class links provide links to web content you post for student use. Teacher tools allow support for customizing student access to sites such as turning ratings on or off and allowing uploads. All interactions are moderated by the teacher. MashPlant also has an extensive resource library containing tutorials on various subjects such as tips and tricks for remembering facts and an online library of videos and images for use in projects. Be sure to watch the video tutorials to see the many features offered through MashPlant. If you plan to use this site with students under 13, be sure to read the teacher information about parent permission and using this site with students under 13. Sign up and create an account using your school information. You will need to wait to get administration approval.This site includes advertising.

In the Classroom

Use MashPlant as a resource for creating a classroom-to-go where students can find resources and share and interact from anywhere. Add web links for students to access at home, post assignments and homework, and allow students to upload multimedia projects for all to view. If students would like suggestions on a work in progress, this is a great tool to use. If you don't already have a class website, use MashPlant to create your own personal place on the web for your students.

Story Maps takes learning in a new direction. Interactive maps tell a story through videos, images, audio, and links. Learn more about the topics in text that accompanies each map. A timeline of "dots" allows you to move through the story step by step. A satellite view is available on some maps, and legends give you important information to read the map accurately. A wide variety of topics are available to inform and educate. Use the search bar to find a map to meet your needs. Travel to the most visited National Parks or explore an interactive map of the three days and decisive moments of the battle of Gettysburg. It is important to pay as much attention to the text pop-ups as the cartography and other aspects of the map. New stories are added every two weeks. so come back often! This review was for the free area of the site that allows you to view the map stories. There are extensive directions on how to create your own maps, but these suggest purchase of maps, etc. from ArcGIS, an affiliate of Esri. Some of the map storytelling ideas could be used with other free mapping tools, however.

In the Classroom

Map out interactive virtual field trips on Story Maps. Introduce this site on your interactive whiteboard or projector. Then have students explore this site independently or in small groups. Have a team competition as students navigate the site on an interactive whiteboard to complete a scavenger hunt. Students can find geometric shapes in real life objects on the images with the maps. Calculate distances or time if the map is a timeline of events. Use this site as an anticipatory set or "activator" to introduce a unit or lesson on a projector or interactive whiteboard. Make a shortcut to this site on classroom computers and use it as a center. Be sure to help your weaker readers and ESL/ELL students by sharing the vocabulary words prior to reading, either on a handout or by projecting them on an interactive whiteboard and highlighting them in the text as you come to them. Have students create online posters to summarize what they learned from the map, individually or together as a class using a tool such as Web Poster Wizard (reviewed here) or PicLits (reviewed here. Ask students to write informational essays on the topics or use the maps to write creative stories. Challenge your most tech-savvy or gifted students to explore the step by step map storytelling directions and try their hand using google Maps or other map tools. The advice in these directions is excellent.